Extole Raises $7.6M in Funding

San Francisco-based Extole, maker of a social advocacy platform, has inked $7.6 million in fresh capital. Current investors Shasta Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners, Redpoint Ventures and Trident Capital provided the capital. The company has raised a total of $29.6 million. The latest infusion will be used for growth efforts.

PRESS RELEASEToday, Extole, www.extole.com, the leading social advocacy platform, announced it has closed an additional $7.6 million in funding. The investment was made by Extole’s current investor roster including Shasta Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners, Redpoint Ventures and Trident Capital.

“Social media marketing is going through a fundamental transition. Marketers are shifting their focus from simply measuring social activity to driving measurable marketing ROI,” said Jim Barnett, Chairman of the Board at Extole and General Partner at Shasta Ventures. “The power of word of mouth is critical to this shift, and we believe that Extole’s approach to social advocacy uniquely positions the company to drive the next wave of innovation in social marketing.”

The additional funding will be used to fuel growth and accelerate product and platform investments. This brings Extole’s total funding raised to date to $29.6 million.

The funding follows a record year of growth in 2012 for Extole across revenue, bookings and customer acquisition. Recent wins including eHarmony, Spotify, Cache, Seventh Generation and HSN Improvements join Extole’s existing customers T-Mobile, Shutterfly, Redbox, SkyMall, Seamless and more.

About Extole

Extole is the leading social advocacy platform for brands and agencies to drive measurable results through word of mouth (WOM) marketing. Extole helps brands engage consumers across all touch points including a brand’s website, email and social networks like Facebook. Its customers include T-Mobile, Shutterfly, Redbox, Travel Channel, Zazzle, kate spade new york, SkyMall, and Seamless. The company is financially backed by Shasta Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, Trident Capital, and Norwest Venture Partners.